Boosting the proton conduction in a magnetic dysprosium-organic framework by introducing conjugate NH_(4)^(+)-NH_(3)pairs

Metal-organic frameworks(MOFs)with inherent porosity and suspended acidic groups are promising proton conducting materials in water or aqua-ammonia media.Herein we report a new lanthanide phosphonate,namely,Dy_(2)(amp_(2)H_(2))_(2)(mal)(H_(2)O)_(2)·5H2O(MDAF-6).It possesses a 3D open-framework structure,and shows a high NH_(3)adsorption capacity of 142.4 cm^(3)/g at P/P0=0.98 at 298 K due to acid-base interaction.Interestingly,the proton conductivity of MDAF-6-NH3 is enhanced by five orders of magnitude compared to MDAF-6 after 8.5 h exposure in saturated NH_(3)-H_(2)O vapor,indicating the importance of coexistent conjugate acid-base pairs of H_(3)O+-H_(2)O and NH_(4)^(+)-NH_(3)in promoting proton conduction.Magnetic studies of MDAF-6 revealed slow magnetization relaxation under zero dc field,characteristic of singlemolecule magnet behavior.This work provides not only a new multifunctional MOF material,but also a new strategy to improve proton conduction in aqua-ammonia medium.